Troubled US government-backed mortgage firm Freddie Mac on Wednesday asked for an additional 10.6 billion dollars from the Treasury Department to cover losses.
Announcing a 6.7 billion dollar loss in the first quarter, Freddie Mac said it would need the new funding by June 30 this year.
The Washington-area company has already received more than 50 billion dollars in taxpayers cash to cover losses from toxic assets.
It warned that further demands would be on the way: “Freddie Mac expects to request additional draws,” the firm said in a statement.
“The size and timing of such draws will be determined by a variety of factors that could adversely affect the company’s net worth.”
In 2008, the government pledged to ensure that Freddie Mac, and its larger sister organization Fannie Mae, kept a “positive net worth.”
The deal was designed to prop up the vital US housing market from collapsing totally and pushing the economy over the precipice.